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Postpartum time can be hard for a lot of mamas. With the very real threat of postpartum depression, women are often times very anxious about what life will be like once baby comes. One thing that has made my postpartum period so much easier has been ingesting my placenta. Yes, you read that correctly! Many women swear by this ancient Chinese medicine. There are many benefits to ingesting your placenta after the birth of your baby. Let's talk about it :-) ...

The placenta is this amazing organ that your body creates for you and your baby during pregnancy. It acts as your body’s hormone factory throughout your pregnancy, regulating and producing a different variety of hormones including serotonin and oxytocin. You see, during pregnancy the placenta takes over most of the hormone production in your body. This is great, except when your placenta is gone, those hormones take a dramatic dip and are practically non existent in your body. It takes a while for your brain to get back to regulating these hormones. By ingesting your placenta, it is believed that you can replenish your body with the hormones that linger inside the placenta. The amazing thing is that the placenta’s hormonal make-up is unique to the mother.

Do I mean you should just cut right into it after the baby is born?? No, not necessarily! Though a lot of women (including myself) have benefitted from swallowing a small piece of the placenta immediately after birth to help the uterus contract, thats not what I'm here to tell you about. Placenta encapsulation is a means of ingesting your placenta without the "gross" factor. My placenta encapsulation services include processing the placenta in the widely accepted "raw method", which means it is washed off, dehydrated, blended up into a powder, and put into capsules so that you can take them just like a vitamin. I try to get your "placenta pills" back to you by your third day postpartum! I'll pick up your placenta from the hospital (just ask your nurses/ midwives to save your placenta for you. It's never a problem and you don't need to explain anything to them), and I'll come pick it up the day of the birth! Read what others are saying about my placenta encapsulation services..

"It was my first time having a baby and knowing my character, I expected to have baby blues after delivery. Then I bump into Elyse's service on placenta encapsulation service and I read through about it but I was skeptical at first. Since the hospital does normally throw the placenta away, I decided to give it a try and I was very glad with the result. I did not have a baby blues and it also helped a lot in stopping the bleeding.Elyse provided an excellent service with a reasonable price. She even came to hospital for placenta collection. I totally recommend everybody for her service." -Rita

"I had never heard of placenta encapsulation before Elyse suggested it to me. I looked into it more and decided its a great idea. I took the capsules everyday for around 2 months after the birth. Its hard to say but I think they helped shorten my recovery time and kept my energy at a normal level." -Racine

If you're interested in this service, or would just like to learn more about it, please let me know! Please check out the Placenta Encapsulation info page on the website to learn more. I'm excited to be able to continue to offer this service to you as your local doula even while I'm on maternity leave <3 I hope to be hearing form you soon!

So, let's just get right to it.. I'm super pregnant and desperate for anything that helps ease my mind and encourages my mama heart. I've used these birth affirmation cards in the past with clients and have given them to friends, but here I am... needing them for myself!

Have you ever thought to use affirmation cards in your pregnancy and labor? I love the idea of affirmations that you can just carry around with you in your purse or pocket to use when needed. I know from experience that sometimes those waves of panic, fear and just general fed up-ness (that's a word, right?!?!) can come at you quickly and unexpectedly. When those times hit, it's good to have a quick resource on hand to help center and calm your heart and mind!

When in labor, birth affirmations are a key way to ensure that you stay focused, calm, and empowered. Give them to your midwife, partner, or doula to either read to you when you need it most or to hand off to you when you need to look through them yourself. Maybe you could tape some up on the wall next to where you're laboring to be able to look at them hands free. This would be especially helpful in the event of a water birth where you might not want to get the cards wet.

I'm planning on having my stack of cards printed out and tied together in the corner so I can flip through them as need be, as well as another copy of the set printed and taped on the wall by my birthing pool (can't have too many!!). If you're interested in making your own birth affirmation cards, I suggest looking through books and different resources online to gather all your favorite birth quotes, scriptures, words of power, and helpful reminders to put on your cards. I love the affirmations used in the Hypnobirthing technique. Find a background that's calming and visually pleasing to look at to either write or type your affirmation on. A great idea would be to paint/draw/color your own cards, use fabric, photographs, calming plain colors or anything you think would speak to you in a time of need.

As a doula, I've left birth affirmations with a mama who was having a LONG labor and needed something to comfort her through a long and uncomfortable night in the hospital. I've given them to a mama who was preparing for a HBAC (homebirth after C section) and was dealing with feelings of fear during her pregnancy. Both women said that they used the cards and felt that they were an awesome help to them in those times of need! I usually give them as a gift at baby showers and blessingways, and I've heard that my mama friends always look forward to this very special and helpful gift :-)

So, here I am... almost 38 weeks pregnant and definitely finding myself in need of some affirmations here and there! If you are pregnant, or looking to make a meaningful gift for a friend who is pregnant, be sure to remember the importance and power of positive affirmation! Who doesn't need a little reminder every once in a while that they are freaking awesome and can kick some major ass! This is of course especially important during pregnancy and labor!